Joey Lawrence and brothers Matthew Lawrence and Andrew Lawrence surprised fans when they revealed their real last name.

On Friday, three brothers – Joey, Matthew, and Andrew – all in their late 30s or early 40s, participated in a panel at 90s Con. They explained the reason behind adopting “Lawrence” as their stage name when they entered the entertainment industry as child stars. Their legal last name is Mignogna.

“It was my middle name,” Joey, who was born Joseph Lawrence Mignogna, said via Entertainment Weekly. 

Joey shared that the decision to use a different surname came about due to the difficulty people faced in pronouncing “Mignogna” back in the early ’80s. Joey himself was named after their father and grandfather on their dad’s side, which contributed to their unique and unfamiliar surname.

“Today, things like that are celebrated,” the “Blossom” star continued.

“In the ’80s, it was like, ‘We’re going to need to water this down. There are silent Gs.’

“Because you spell our last name [Mignogna] like filet mignon,’” Joey added.

“So, they were like, ‘Let’s call him Joey Lawrence.’ So that’s just what they did.”

Matthew and Andrew, being Joey’s younger brothers, found it practical to follow his lead and use the same fictitious last name when they ventured into the world of child acting in Hollywood. Joey mentioned that it was a logical choice for his siblings to utilize “Lawrence,” the same surname he adopted, to enhance their careers in the industry.

Matthew shared his view that the trio’s parents, Joseph and Donna Mignogna, also saw the advantage that using a different last name would provide their children.

“I also think my parents, and wisely so, [knew] there was an insulation factor, where, before the internet, you could hide behind that at, you know, at school,” Matthew said. 

“Some people might check in old-school ways, but it would be very, very hard to find us,” he added.

“That was a great thing.”

However, the brothers agreed they now wish they hadn’t used Lawrence as their last name instead of Mignogna.

“It would have made it easier,” Andrew said.

“It’s really a pain in the butt, honestly, having two names. You have to prove you’re both people.”

Matthew explained that he had also encountered difficulties due to the name change.

“Now I’m just stuck with two different names, and I can’t travel internationally,” he said.

“For a while there, the government only recognized me as Matt Lawrence because I paid taxes from the time I was a toddler to 18 as Matt Lawrence.”

“But, really, my name is Matthew William Mignogna,” Matthew added.

“So, when I grew up and used my real name on my passport, there was absolutely no correlation. I didn’t exist.”

Joey launched his career at the age of 5 in 1981 when he appeared in a Cracker Jack commercial.

He made his breakthrough when he starred in the hit NBC sitcom “Gimme a Break!” from 1983 to 1987.

Joey became a teen idol in the ’90s when he played Joey Russo, the older brother of Blossom Russo (Mayim Bialik), in the hit NBC series “Blossom.”

Matthew was 3 years old when he began acting after he was cast in the hit soap opera “Dynasty.”

During the ’90s, he starred in numerous TV shows and movies, including playing Robin Williams’ son Chris in 1993’s “Mrs. Doubtfire” and Jack Hunter in “Boy Meets World.”

Andrew also entered the entertainment industry at the age of 3, playing the younger version of his brother Joey in “Blossom.”

He later voiced the lead character of T.J. Detweiler in the ’90s animated sitcom “Recess” as well as the 2001 feature film “Recess: School’s Out” and two direct-to-video movies.

Joey, Matthew and Andrew starred together as the Roman brothers in the sitcom “Brotherly Love” for two seasons from 1995 to 1997.

The trio now host the “Brotherly Love Podcast,” which they launched in 2023.